Bench Press Assembly

ABSTRACT

A safety apparatus for a bench press.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

Not applicable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure generally relates to an apparatus that facilitates the safety of a person lifting weights on a bench press assembly.

Exercise is responsible for vast numbers of injuries annually. The bench press for example, which involves a person lifting weight on a barbell while lying prone on a bench, is an exercise notorious for its potential to cause serious and even fatal injuries. A conventional bench press includes a bench and a set of upright supports that hold a weighted barbell in an upright position. A user lies down on the bench, lifts the barbell off the supports, lowers the barbell to touch the chest, then pushes it back up until the arms are straight, and repeats the process for the duration of the exercise routine. At the end of the repetitions, the user puts the barbell back on the racks. If, at any time during this exercise, the barbell slips from the person's grasp or the user otherwise loses control of the barbell, it may fall on the user's face, neck, chest, or abdomen, resulting in serious bodily injuries including even asphyxiation and death.

Injury may result even when a person maintains a grip on the barbell but can no longer raise the weight from the person's chest. Specifically, it is important for a participant who seeks to improve strength to lift at or near his or her limit, i.e. the most weight that can be lifted in a given series of one or more repetitions. This results in the most progressive improvement in the strength of the particular muscle group targeted via the bench press. Thus, inevitably, regular bench pressing will result in episodes when a person is stuck with a barbell on their chest because an attempt to increase performance failed.

To prevent such accidents, especially when using heavier weights, users usually have one or more spotters to either catch a slipping barbell or help a lifter put the barbell back on the supports when lifting fails. However, a spotter is not always available to the many people who, for one reason or another, bench press alone at home or at a time when a spotter is not immediately available. Moreover, bench pressing entails significant risks even using spotters, who may not be paying sufficient attention or who may simply not be able to react quickly enough if a barbell is dropped.

The prior art provides several different devices to reduce the occurrence of such accidents. As an example, some bench presses include two lower hooks located approximately one foot above the weight bench seat—one attached to each main upright support at the head of the bench. This ostensibly enables a fatigued person doing the bench press exercise to, with what strength remains, move the now too-heavy barbell backwards over the lifter's throat and face and onto the hooks in order to abandon the weight. This is plainly hazardous, especially when attempting one repetition with maximum weight. To alleviate this danger, U.S. Pat. No. 4,411,425 to Milner discloses a similar device but located over the lifter's abdomen rather than behind the head. This device, however, still presents safety risks as the barbell may drop on the lifter's abdomen or ribs if the lifter misses the support hooks.

Other examples of safety devices for bench presses abound. U.S. Pat. No. 5,989,164 to Kullman et al. (1999) shows a device that lifts the weight from the lifter's chest. While this device removes the weight from the lifter's chest, it utilizes cables that increase setup time and can cause increased or decreased resistance due to contact with the barbell. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 6,746,379 to Brawner discloses a complex hydraulic lift assist mechanism by which a user can kick a lever to engage a pair of hydraulically actuated lift arms to lift the barbell when the user's strength is insufficient to do so. This device, however, is of little use in the event that the lifter inadvertently drops the barbell on the lifter's face, neck, etc.

What is desired, therefore, is an improved apparatus capable of providing for the safety of a lifter engaging in a bench press training routine.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the invention, and to show how the same may be carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of example, to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows an improved safety device according to the present disclosure adjacent a bench press.

FIG. 2 shows a front perspective view of the improved safety device of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 shows a rear perspective view of the improved safety device of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 shows an exploded assembly view of the improved safety device of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIGS. 1-3, an improved safety apparatus for a bench press routine may comprise an assembly 10 selectively positionable proximate a bench press 12 by which a person may lift a barbell 14. The assembly 10 may in some uses simply be positioned adjacent the bench press 12 or more preferably, as described later in this specification, may be secured to the bench press 12. The assembly 10 protects a lifter from injury by including one or more of a faceguard 16 and a chestguard 18. The faceguard 16 preferably comprises a pair of faceguard members 16 a and 16 b that each have an upper lateral support that together prevent a barbell from falling on a person's face or neck. The chestguard 18 similarly preferably comprises a pair of chestguard members 18 a and 18 b that each have a lower lateral support that together prevent a barbell from falling on a person's chest.

Preferably, the assembly 10 includes a pair of vertical supports 20 a and 22 b, respectively and a pair of horizontal supports 22 a and 22 b, respectively. The vertical supports 20 a and 20 b may preferably comprise planar members that may be positioned adjacent one of the supports 24 of the bench press that holds a barbell. In some uses, each of the vertical supports 20 a and 20 b may each be affixed to a respective support 24 by a bolt, a weld, or some other mechanism. The horizontal supports 22 a and 22 b may each extend generally horizontally away from a respective vertical support 20 a or 20 b. In a preferred embodiment, each of the horizontal supports 22 a and 22 b are each positioned at the base of a respective vertical support 20 a or 20 b, so that when assembled and positioned adjacent a bench press, each of the horizontal supports 22 a and 22 b rest on the ground. It should be understood, however, that in some embodiments, it may be possible that the horizontal supports 22 a and 22 b may not rest on the ground. Those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that, although FIGS. 1-3 show the horizontal supports 22 a and 22 b connected to, and extending from, the vertical supports 20 a and 20 b, some embodiments may have a horizontal support not connected to a respective vertical support. Preferably, each of the horizontal supports 22 a, 22 b are hollow with an opening 52 (seen in FIG. 3) sized to slide over a floor support of a bench press.

Referring to FIG. 2, each faceguard member 16 a, 16 b preferably comprises an upper horizontal segment 26 attached to a respective vertical support 20 a, 20 b and a lower vertical segment 28 attached to a respective horizontal support 22 a, 22 b. In a preferred embodiment, each faceguard member 16 a, 16 b comprises a cylindrical tube having an L-shaped elbow bent at a right angle to form the respective horizontal segment 26 and vertical segment 28. Together, the upper horizontal segments 26 of each faceguard member 16 a, 16 b form a platform capable of arresting the downward movement of a barbell.

Each chestguard member 18 a, 18 b preferably comprises a horizontal arm 30 supported by a strut 32. Preferably, the strut 32 is slidably received in a sleeve 34. Each of the strut 32 and the sleeve 34 have one or more of apertures 36 by which, in conjunction with a pin 38, may be used to adjust the height of the chestguard members 18 a, 18 b to an appropriate level for the individual lifter.

As those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate, the assembly 10 protects the head, the neck, and the chest of a lifter. In particular, the faceguard 16 protects the head and neck of a lifter while a barbell is raised from the bench press and moved to a lateral position over the lifter's chest, at which point the lower chestguard 18 protects the lifter's chest should the barbell be either dropped or should the lifter not have sufficient strength to raise the barbell back to a position at which the barbell may be returned to the supports of the bench press.

Preferably, each horizontal arm 30 of the chestguard member 18 a, 18 b is slidably engaged with a respective faceguard member 16 a, 16 b. This serves dual purposes. First, such sliding engagement facilitates adjustment of the chestguard 18 to an appropriate height for an individual lifter. Moreover, the slidable engagement between the chestguard 18 and the faceguard 16 inhibits a dropped barbell from falling between the faceguard and the chestguard to injure a lifter. For example, if the chestguard and faceguard were simply constructed as two adjacent members, it might be possible for a dropped barbell to slide forward off of the faceguard and forcibly separate the faceguard from the chestguard as it falls upon a lifter. This is not a trivial concern given the magnitude of the weight often lifted in a bench press. Thus, by slidably engaging the chestguard around the faceguard, there is no gap or opening between these two elements by which a barbell may fall between. Preferably, sliding engagement is achieved via an aperture 50 in the horizontal arm 30 through which the lower vertical segment 28 of the faceguard 16 a, 16 b is received.

In a preferred embodiment, the horizontal arm 30 includes a stop 40 to prevent a dropped barbell from rolling forward off of the chestguard. Also in a preferred embodiment, the assembly 10 includes a lateral brace member 42 that braces the chestguard members 18 a and 18 b against each other. The brace member 42 may comprise a crossbar 44 with sleeves 46 at either end. The sleeves 46 preferably each are sized to slide over the sleeves 34 of the chestguard 18 a, 18 b. Preferably, the horizontal arm 30 is shaped to extend beneath a bench 46 of the bench press 12.

Referring to FIG. 4, the assembly 10 may be assembled by spacing opposed side members 60 at a distance determined by the length of the lateral brace member 42 (which is in turn determined by the width of the bench press to which the assembly 10 is to be positioned adjacent). Each of the side members 60 includes a faceguard member 16 and chestguard member 18 slideably and pivotally engaged with the faceguard member so that the strut 32 may be removed and rotated away from the sleeve 34, so that the respective sleeves 46 of the brace member 42 may be dropped over the sleeves 34, thus bracing the opposed side members against each other. Once the brace member 42 is secured in place, the struts 32 of the chestguard members 18 may be rotated into position and lowered into the respective sleeves 34 and secured using the pin 38 and the apertures 36. Those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that, where the opposed side members 60 each include hollow horizontal supports 22 a, 22 b with corresponding apertures 52 as shown in FIG. 3, the assembly procedure just described may occur before or after the hollow supports 33 a, 22 b are slid over a floor support of a bench press.

It will be appreciated that the invention is not restricted to the particular embodiment that has been described, and that variations may be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims, as interpreted in accordance with principles of prevailing law, including the doctrine of equivalents or any other principle that enlarges the enforceable scope of a claim beyond its literal scope. Unless the context indicates otherwise, a reference in a claim to the number of instances of an element, be it a reference to one instance or more than one instance, requires at least the stated number of instances of the element but is not intended to exclude from the scope of the claim a structure or method having more instances of that element than stated. The word “comprise” or a derivative thereof, when used in a claim, is used in a nonexclusive sense that is not intended to exclude the presence of other elements or steps in a claimed structure or method. 

1. An apparatus comprising: (a) a vertical support selectively positionable adjacent a bench press, and a horizontal support; (b) an elongate faceguard member having an upper horizontal segment attached to the vertical support and a dower vertical segment attached to the horizontal support; and (c) a chestguard member slidably engaged with the faceguard member.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1 including a strut attached to the chestguard member for vertical adjustment of the chestguard member.
 3. The apparatus of claim 2 where the strut includes a plurality of vertically arranged apertures for alignment with a corresponding hole in a sleeve into which said strut may be selectively inserted.
 4. The apparatus of claim 3 including an elongate brace member having opposed said sleeves at each respective end of the brace member, each sleeve sized to enclose a respective strut of opposed instances of said apparatus.
 5. The apparatus of claim 4 where the brace member is shaped to extend beneath the bench of a bench press to which the apparatus is positioned adjacent.
 6. The apparatus of claim 1 where the base member is hollow.
 7. The apparatus of claim 6 where the base member includes a plurality of horizontally arranged apertures for alignment with a corresponding hole in a base support of a bench press, and about which the hollow base member may slide.
 8. The apparatus of claim 1 where the chest guard includes a stop member at its distal end.
 9. The apparatus of claim 1 where the chestguard and the faceguard are arranged to prevent a dropped barbell from falling between the chestguard and the faceguard.
 10. The apparatus of claim 9 where the faceguard has a cylindrical profile and the chest guard forms an aperture engaged around the cylindrical profile.
 11. In combination with a bench press having vertical supports to support a barbell at respective ends and a bench extending laterally away from the supports, a safety assembly comprising: (a) a faceguard proximate the vertical support arms, the faceguard comprising opposed elongate L-shaped members, together presenting a horizontal platform together capable of arresting the downward movement of a barbell; and (b) a chestguard vertically slidable along the faceguard, the chestguard comprising opposed arms together capable of arresting the downward movement of the barbell at a position lower than the respective platforms of the faceguard.
 12. The combination of claim 11 including respective struts attached to the arms of the chestguard member for vertical adjustment of the chestguard member.
 13. The combination of claim 12 where each strut includes a plurality of vertically arranged apertures for alignment with a corresponding hole in a sleeve into which said strut may be selectively inserted.
 14. The combination of claim 13 including an elongate brace member having opposed said sleeves at each respective end of the brace member, each sleeve sized to fit a respective strut.
 15. The combination of claim 14 where the brace member is shaped to extend beneath the bench of the bench press.
 16. The combination of claim 11 including respective hollow base members, each supporting a respective side of the faceguard and a respective side of the chestguard.
 17. The combination of claim 16 where the hollow base members each enclose a respective floor support of the bench press, and each respective base member includes a plurality of horizontally arranged apertures for alignment with any corresponding hole in the enclosed floor support.
 18. The combination of claim 11 where the chest guard includes a stop at its distal end.
 19. The combination of claim 11 where the chestguard and the faceguard are arranged to prevent a dropped barbell from falling between the chestguard and the faceguard.
 20. The combination of claim 19 where the L-shaped members each have a cylindrical profile and the opposed arms of the chest guard each form an aperture engaged around the cylindrical profile of a respective L-shaped member. 